Painter's Tape
by anthropomorphychan
Summary: Till what point will a mask cease protecting what it's trying to protect? When defences are covertly infiltrated, and harsh reality seeps in – not until the mask is removed will one realise just how much damage has been done. One-sided Shika/Ten. Neji/Ten


**A/N:**** Gosh,**** feels**** like**** ages ****since ****I ****last ****wrote. ****:( Writer****'****s ****block ****is ****a**_ /female__dog/ _**when ****it ****happens ****so ****I ****jumped ****at ****the ****chance ****to ****try ****my ****hand**** at ****writing ****a**** story ****for ****a ****contest ****in**** DA**** based**** on**** a**** prompt (never done that before).**** Really**** keen**** to ****write ****a**** multi-chapter ****fic**** – ****I****'****ve ****got**** a ****few ****plot**** bunnies ****mulling**** around**** … ****I ****just ****need**** to**** find**** the ****time ****to**** catch ****all**** of**** them ****and**** stick**** 'em ****in**** a ****hatch. ****:P ****I**** haven****'****t**** done ****one**** in ****EONS!**

**Anyhoo,** **this ****turned out a little different from what I had first in mind****; ****it**** sorta ****just**** ended ****up**** that ****way.**** Hopefully**** I**** didn****'****t ****muck ****it**** up ****too**** much**** – ****I ****had**** some ****ideas ****but**** I**** couldn****'****t ****quite ****express ****it ****as ****well as ****I ****wanted ****to.**** Oh**** well.**** I**** hope**** you**** enjoy**** anyway.**

**Morphy-chan**

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><p><strong>Summary:<strong> Till what point will a mask cease protecting what it's trying to protect? When defences are covertly infiltrated, and harsh reality seeps in – not until the mask is removed will one realise just how much damage has been done. One-sided Shika/Ten. Neji/Ten implied.

**Genre: **Hurt/Comfort/Friendship

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto … unfortunately.

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><p><strong>Painter's Tape<strong>

_anthropomorphichybrid_

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The cloying smell of fresh paint is a two-faced demon, offering a prophetic vision of new life and new beginnings whilst trapping you under an invincible mist of toxic residue. Partially high and dizzy due to impalpable fumes, Tenten paused for a smidgen of a second, before shaking her head to try and release the noxious fumes that have entered her system. Hand on the partially opened door, she pushed gently, widening the opening to see the usually indolent Shikamaru busy with a paintbrush.

The room itself was understandably harder to tolerate than the hallway she just came through, even with the pleasant scent coming from the potted lavender that sat idly inside a blue plastic pot, casually lounging on the open window sill. Though, if Tenten was to be completely and utterly honest, the mingling odours of the naturally strong scented plant mixed with the unnatural concoction of what is commonly known as 'house paint' made the whole experience so much worse – in the end, she decided on breathing through her mouth.

"Hey," she greeted him pleasantly with a small friendly smile on her face.

Shikamaru paused after finishing the strip that he was on and looked at her with half-lidded eyes, the corner of his lip forming a small upward twitch that lasted less than a second before turning into a full blown scowl.

"You've been crying," he said without preamble, putting the brush on the paint lid alongside a few other used ones before making his way to her.

Tenten stiffened, her smiling mask cracking without a lot of effort on the 20 year old Nara's part. Denial was clear in her eyes and she opened her mouth to retort, only to have Shikamaru give her a look worthy of the ANBU Captain position he held. Denial was washed away quickly as her eyes glossed over from the sudden influx of liquid that seemed to have come out of nowhere.

Without hesitation, he closed the gap between them and held his Vice-Captain tightly, rubbing her back gently as he tucked her in under his larger frame.

The tap broke, and soon his shirt was soaked in tears. No words were exchanged while she cried, as both knew that nothing would've been understood between her blubbering. When she finally stopped, a single word escaped her lips.

"Neji."

Shikamaru tensed. The single word was filled with so much more meaning than a single word should ever contain. His mind spun in overdrive, multiple cogs whirring endlessly at the implication of the word – but rationality soon took over and he sighed, letting his body relax as logic suggested he do.

"What happened _this_time?" he said, unable to keep himself from emphasising that single point.

The woman in his arms either didn't hear the inflection or chose to ignore it completely. She lifted her head out of Shikamaru's hold and gently grabbed his arms, adding some distance between them. She looked up, her eyes now noticeably redder than before.

"He's …" she paused, biting her lip as tried to make a coherent sentence in her head. "He's lost his mask," she finished simply.

The Nara frowned, not knowing how to proceed. He knew she wasn't just talking about the Hyuga's ANBU mask as that could be easily replaced. So he just looked at her, a look of mild confusion replacing his usually relaxed or astute facial expression.

"He's lost his mask," she repeated to herself quietly, looking down at her sandaled feet, before shaking her head to correct her assessment, "no, he's _become_his mask."

She dropped her hold on him before continuing on, "He's always had a mask on; everyone does. It's part of being a shinobi. Even I have multiple masks to protect me in my missions."

Shikamaru only nodded to show he was listening.

"But the thing with masks is that it's there to protect you, it's not supposed to over power you and take over your true self. You're not supposed to mask your emotions for that long – we're humans, for Kami's sake! We're not designed to be that way, not even shinobi. We've learnt to create a mask befitting the situation we are put in, whether it is an impassive look in the middle of battle, an innocent facade as a civilian or a seductive veneer to entice clients who are more susceptible to lust. Masks are for our _missions;_ it's for our _jobs_not for everyday life! You're not supposed to keep the mask on when you're with people close to you. People who care about you. People you can trust."

The younger man looked at her calmly, "But even you Tenten have your own especially made mask for everyday living. It's that exact same mask you put on when you greeted me a few minutes ago. And if I didn't know you better, I would've fallen for that easy smile and would've overlooked the fact that you're everything but happy. How is that different from Neji's behaviour?"

Tenten looked up at Shikamaru, wary eyes the colour of toasted caramel against a set of unfathomable coffee swirls.

"It's different," she finally replied, looking away in the process.

"How so?" was the laconic reply.

"Because … because he's my _boyfriend_."

He flinched, but Tenten hardly noticed.

"Besides," the clueless woman continued, "I never hold the mask up for long with you anyway. I know that you're more than just my Captain, you're also my friend. And I trust you. You know me all too well by now. And Kami knows, you probably know me better than anyone, or just about as well as any of my former teammates – which is a rather amazing accomplishment if I think about it since we've only been working together for about 3 years, and I've known Lee and Neji since our Academy days." A small smile escaped her lips as her eyes glazed over briefly, her body language clearly indicating that she was reminiscing the older days.

But the smile and the glazed look were soon washed over by gentle melancholy. "I'm supposed to be the one who knows Neji the best. And he's supposed to _trust_me as much as I trust him. Does he even trust me any more? He was never like this after the first chunin exams … not after what Naruto had shown him. But it's even worse now than it was back in our pre-chunin days. His control over his emotions and his reactions have been honed so well that I can't tell any longer what he's thinking or feeling. He hasn't smiled in more than a month. We haven't talked about anything personal lately either – it's always mission this, mission that. Did I do something wrong? Does he still love me?"

The last part was almost inaudible, the question no longer directed at the shadow manipulator but at herself. She sidestepped to her right and walked passed Shikamaru, picking up a paintbrush and gently adding a new coat of pale green paint on the unpainted section of the room. The Nara soon turned to face Tenten, ducking down to grab his previously discarded brush and painted alongside her.

They painted silently, side by side. Minutes passed before he spoke.

"You know, I can only speculate at the answers to those questions. And even then, I'm sure you would've come up with the same conclusions as I."

His companion continued painting, seemingly as if she had not heard him – but he knew better.

He continued with his painting, knowing she'll respond when she's ready.

Finally, she looked at him, "I'm worried. I really am. No mask is perfect, not even his. No matter how many times he's practiced putting his mask on, or how carefully he's placed it, there will always be a bit of something that will seep under the defences of his mask. And if he doesn't remove it, he'll never truly know how far he's been affected, how much he's been damaged."

"It's a bit like this painter's masking tape," she continued, gesturing towards the purple tape that surrounded the wall's borders. "No amount of care can completely prevent the bit of paint that seeps under its protective layer. Strengthening the adhesive could potentially reduce what seeps through, but when the tape is finally removed, so to will some of the wall's surface – the exact thing you were trying to protect in the first place."

Tenten reached over the young Nara, fingering the partially upturned edge of the tape on one section of the border. She rolled it gently with a finger, peeling it away slowly to reveal a stray green vein marring the otherwise pristine white border.

"And this is what happens," she whispered gently, her eyes on the stray imperfection, but her mind clearly away from the physical world.

A gentle hand on her own snapped her out of her reverie. The larger hand picked hers up and pushed it aside, away from the border. Shikamaru held on, grasping a finer brush with his other hand while speaking softly.

"Just because you weren't able to protect what's underneath doesn't mean it's too late. Granted, what's underneath has changed – but it can always be changed for the better. It's up to you to mould it. Just look at what Naruto has done, not just for Neji, but for all of us. He's proven that it doesn't take a genius to make things better."

With a slight movement of his hand, he drew over the green vein, creating individual petals atop the green stain to create a simple flower.

"But you can't wait too late, or the smudge will no longer be fixable," she reasoned, pulling her hand out gently from his grasp to reveal more of the previously protected edge. She thumbed over a dried air bubble encased within a blob of paint.

Shikamaru shrugged, "It's not that it will no longer be fixable, it's just going to take a bit more effort, more time and/or a different approach. But that's what you've been doing isn't it? You've been helping him change throughout these years and you've influenced him a lot more than you think. You've certainly helped to touch up over his more – insufferable qualities. "

Tenten let out a small smile.

"But there's only so much 'touching up' I can do. Even paints have their own qualities that no matter what I do, there are things that cannot be done. In the end, too much 'fixing' can lead to the destruction of something that was once precious."

Shikamaru glanced at her before picking up a new brush, "If you really feel that way, you know, it's not the end of the world."

Finding another thin green smear, he levelled his brush and slowly drew red strokes, creating small red petals in the centre and larger ones onto the outer edge. Upon finishing, he looked at her with solemn eyes.

Her eyes widened slightly at the significance of the picture. A red chrysanthemum.

She looked back at him, her eyes saddened. Grabbing a yellow brush, she carefully drew a yellow chrysanthemum over another green vein; just above the red one Shikamaru drew.

Shikamaru shrugged it off, knowing from the start that it was but a futile endeavour, but his eyes held another story.

But Tenten wasn't finished. She then picked up another brush and skilfully drew a border of small pink and white flowers around the three previous ones they drew. It was an almond blossom.

She placed the brush gently on the paint lid next to everything else, dusted her hands on her dark pants and looked at Shikamaru straight in the eyes. Taking a step forward she embraced him, and soon, she felt him follow suit. He buried his nose briefly into her hair, smelling the delicious scent of cinnamon and vanilla – her scent. He soon let go of her quietly, albeit reluctantly, knowing that delaying the inevitable wasn't going to do him any good. He smiled, a small sad smile. She shook her head and gave him a genuine smile, no hints of sadness, only hope

"Thank you Shikamaru. Thank you for everything."

She leaned in close, pecked him once on the cheek, and then she was gone.

Shikamaru stared at the empty space she once held and smiled ruefully.

'_Hope,__' _he thought, glancing at the border of pink and white almond blossoms his Vice-Captain drew before leaving while shoving idle hands into his pockets.

He sighed, his own words echoing in his mind as he heard his own voice return the advice he gave her earlier, _"…__ it__'__s __not__ the __end __of __the __world.__"_

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><p><strong>Some useful information regarding flowers and their meanings:<strong>

**Red**** Chrysanthemum**** – **a proposition, invitation to ignite a new relationship

**Yellow**** Chrysanthemum**** – **gently declining amorous advances

**Almond ****Blossom**** – **hope, courage, purity

**I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading. :)  
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